Northern lights in Massachusetts tonight
The aurora reaches Massachusetts at about Kp 6.6 in the far north of the state and Kp 6.9 at its southern edge. SWPC's highest forecast Kp over the next three days is 2, in the 03-06 UTC block on Mon, Sep 21. Not tonight. The forecast Kp of 2 is well below what it takes for the aurora to reach this far south.
From NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center, read Sep 20, 22:40 UTC.
The oval right now
NOAA’s OVATION model: the chance of aurora overhead 30 to 90 minutes from now, valid Sep 20, 23:44 UTC. Green is a low chance, red a high one.
Rain and snow mean cloud, and cloud is the last thing between a forecast aurora and the sky you are standing under. Each town page carries that town’s own sky cover forecast for the dark hours.
Open the live map with the aurora forecast
Aurora forecast from NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center. Original at SWPC
Tonight at Amesbury
The most poleward town in Massachusetts with a page, and the first place in the state an aurora reaches. Cloud cover is on each town’s own page.
No tonight
Not tonight. The forecast Kp of 2 is well below what it takes for the aurora to reach this far south.
- The aurora reaches this place at about Kp 6.6, which is 52 degrees geomagnetic latitude on NOAA's storm scales.
- SWPC forecasts a highest Kp of 2 (2.00) during tonight's dark hours: quiet.
- The moon is waxing gibbous, 70% lit, and up for part of the dark hours.
Towns best placed in Massachusetts
The 24 most poleward of the 488 towns in Massachusetts with a page. Each page gives tonight’s chance there, the darkness, the moon and that town’s own cloud forecast.
- AmesburyEssex County · population 18,313 · 52.1° geomagneticKp 6.6
- SalisburyEssex County · population 4,869 · 52.0° geomagneticKp 6.6
- MerrimacEssex County · population 6,245 · 52.0° geomagneticKp 6.6
- NewburyportEssex County · population 17,982 · 52.0° geomagneticKp 6.6
- West NewburyEssex County · population 4,221 · 52.0° geomagneticKp 6.6
- HaverhillEssex County · population 62,765 · 52.0° geomagneticKp 6.6
- GrovelandEssex County · population 6,143 · 52.0° geomagneticKp 6.6
- MethuenEssex County · population 52,044 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- WilliamstownBerkshire County · population 4,325 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- RowleyEssex County · population 1,416 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- LawrenceEssex County · population 80,231 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- North AdamsBerkshire County · population 13,263 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- LeydenFranklin County · population 785 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- NorthfieldFranklin County · population 1,089 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- North AndoverEssex County · population 28,222 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- WinchendonWorcester County · population 4,213 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- WarwickFranklin County · population 763 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- RoyalstonWorcester County · population 1,276 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- AshbyMiddlesex County · population 2,895 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- TyngsboroMiddlesex County · population 11,366 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- IpswichEssex County · population 4,222 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- ColrainFranklin County · population 1,845 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- HeathFranklin County · population 819 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
- DunstableMiddlesex County · population 2,878 · 51.9° geomagneticKp 6.6
Every town in Massachusetts with a page
488 towns at 48 degrees geomagnetic latitude or higher, which a strong storm reaches. The figure after each is the Kp it takes there.
A
- Aberdeen Kp 6.7
- Abington Kp 6.7
- Acton Kp 6.7
- Acushnet Kp 6.8
- Acushnet Center Kp 6.8
- Adams Kp 6.6
- Agawam Kp 6.7
- Allston Kp 6.7
- Allston/Brighton Kp 6.7
- Amesbury Kp 6.6
- Amherst Kp 6.7
- Amherst Center Kp 6.7
- Andover Kp 6.6
- Arlington Kp 6.7
- Ashburnham Kp 6.6
- Ashby Kp 6.6
- Ashfield Kp 6.7
- Ashland Kp 6.7
- Ashmont Kp 6.7
- Assonet Kp 6.8
- Athol Kp 6.6
- Attleboro Kp 6.8
- Auburn Kp 6.7
- Auburndale Kp 6.7
- Avon Kp 6.7
- Ayer Kp 6.6
B
- Back Bay Kp 6.7
- Back of the Hill Kp 6.7
- Baldwinville Kp 6.6
- Barnstable Kp 6.8
- Barre Kp 6.7
- Beacon Hill Kp 6.7
- Beaconsfield Kp 6.7
- Becket Kp 6.7
- Bedford Kp 6.7
- Belchertown Kp 6.7
- Bellevue Kp 6.7
- Bellingham Kp 6.7
- Belmont Kp 6.7
- Bemis Kp 6.7
- Berkley Kp 6.8
- Berkshire Heights Kp 6.7
- Berlin Kp 6.7
- Bernardston Kp 6.6
- Beverly Kp 6.6
- Beverly Cove Kp 6.7
- Billerica Kp 6.6
- Blackstone Kp 6.8
- Bliss Corner Kp 6.8
- Bolton Kp 6.7
- Bondsville Kp 6.7
- Boston Kp 6.7
- Boston Seaport Kp 6.7
- Bourne Kp 6.8
- Boxborough Kp 6.7
- Boxford Kp 6.6
- Boylston Kp 6.7
- Braintree Kp 6.7
- Brewster Kp 6.8
- Bridgewater Kp 6.8
- Brighton Kp 6.7
- Brimfield Kp 6.7
- Brockton Kp 6.7
- Brook Farm Kp 6.7
- Brookfield Kp 6.7
- Brookline Kp 6.7
- Buckland Kp 6.6
- Burlington Kp 6.7
- Buzzards Bay Kp 6.8
C
- Cambridge Kp 6.7
- Cambridgeport Kp 6.7
- Canton Kp 6.7
- Carlisle Kp 6.7
- Carver Kp 6.8
- Centerville Kp 6.8
- Charlemont Kp 6.6
- Charlestown Kp 6.7
- Charlton Kp 6.7
- Chatham Kp 6.8
- Chelmsford Kp 6.6
- Chelsea Kp 6.7
- Cheshire Kp 6.6
- Chester Kp 6.7
- Chesterfield Kp 6.7
- Chestnut Hill Kp 6.7
- Chicopee Kp 6.7
- Chilmark Kp 6.9
- Clarendon Hills Kp 6.7
- Clinton Kp 6.7
- Cochituate Kp 6.7
- Cohasset Kp 6.7
- Colrain Kp 6.6
- Concord Kp 6.7
- Conway Kp 6.7
- Coolidge Corner Kp 6.7
- Cordaville Kp 6.7
- Cotuit Kp 6.8
- Cummington Kp 6.7
D
- Dalton Kp 6.7
- Danvers Kp 6.6
- Dedham Kp 6.7
- Deerfield Kp 6.7
- Dennis Kp 6.8
- Dennis Port Kp 6.8
- Devens Kp 6.7
- Dighton Kp 6.8
- Dorchester Kp 6.7
- Douglas Kp 6.7
- Dover Kp 6.7
- Dracut Kp 6.6
- Dudley Kp 6.8
- Dunstable Kp 6.6
- Duxbury Kp 6.8
E
- East Boston Kp 6.7
- East Bridgewater Kp 6.8
- East Brookfield Kp 6.7
- East Cambridge Kp 6.7
- East Dennis Kp 6.8
- East Douglas Kp 6.7
- East Falmouth Kp 6.8
- East Harwich Kp 6.8
- East Longmeadow Kp 6.7
- East Pepperell Kp 6.6
- East Sandwich Kp 6.8
- East Somerville Kp 6.7
- Eastham Kp 6.8
- Easthampton Kp 6.7
- Easton Kp 6.8
- Edgartown Kp 6.9
- Erving Kp 6.6
- Essex Kp 6.6
- Everett Kp 6.7
F
- Fairhaven Kp 6.8
- Fairmount Kp 6.7
- Fall River Kp 6.8
- Falmouth Kp 6.9
- Faneuil Kp 6.7
- Fenway/Kenmore Kp 6.7
- Fiskdale Kp 6.7
- Fitchburg Kp 6.6
- Florida Kp 6.6
- Forestdale Kp 6.8
- Foxborough Kp 6.7
- Framingham Kp 6.7
- Framingham Center Kp 6.7
- Franklin Kp 6.7
- Freetown Kp 6.8
G
- Gardner Kp 6.6
- Gill Kp 6.6
- Gloucester Kp 6.6
- Goshen Kp 6.7
- Grafton Kp 6.7
- Granby Kp 6.7
- Granville Kp 6.7
- Great Barrington Kp 6.7
- Green Harbor-Cedar Crest Kp 6.7
- Greenfield Kp 6.6
- Groton Kp 6.6
- Grove Hall Kp 6.7
- Groveland Kp 6.6
H
- Hadley Kp 6.7
- Halifax Kp 6.8
- Hamilton Worcester Kp 6.7
- Hampden Kp 6.7
- Hancock Kp 6.7
- Hanover Kp 6.7
- Hanson Kp 6.7
- Hardwick Kp 6.7
- Harvard Kp 6.7
- Harwich Kp 6.8
- Harwich Center Kp 6.8
- Harwich Port Kp 6.8
- Hatfield Kp 6.7
- Haverhill Kp 6.6
- Head of Westport Kp 6.8
- Heath Kp 6.6
- Highland Kp 6.7
- Hingham Kp 6.7
- Hinsdale Kp 6.7
- Holbrook Kp 6.7
- Holden Kp 6.7
- Holland Kp 6.7
- Holliston Kp 6.7
- Holyoke Kp 6.7
- Hopedale Kp 6.7
- Hopkinton Kp 6.7
- Housatonic Kp 6.7
- Hubbardston Kp 6.7
- Hudson Kp 6.7
- Hull Kp 6.7
- Huntington Kp 6.7
- Hyannis Kp 6.8
- Hyde Park Kp 6.7
I
- Ipswich Kp 6.6
J
- Jamaica Plain Kp 6.7
- Jeffries Point Kp 6.7
K
- Kendall Square Kp 6.7
- Kingston Kp 6.8
L
- Lancaster Kp 6.7
- Lanesborough Kp 6.7
- Lawrence Kp 6.6
- Lee Kp 6.7
- Leicester Kp 6.7
- Lenox Kp 6.7
- Leominster Kp 6.7
- Leverett Kp 6.7
- Lexington Kp 6.7
- Leyden Kp 6.6
- Lincoln Kp 6.7
- Littleton Common Kp 6.7
- Longmeadow Kp 6.8
- Lowell Kp 6.6
- Lower Allston Kp 6.7
- Ludlow Kp 6.7
- Lunenburg Kp 6.6
- Lynn Kp 6.7
- Lynnfield Kp 6.7
M
- Malden Kp 6.7
- Manchester-by-the-Sea Kp 6.6
- Mansfield Kp 6.8
- Mansfield Center Kp 6.8
- Marblehead Kp 6.7
- Marion Kp 6.8
- Marion Center Kp 6.8
- Marlborough Kp 6.7
- Marshfield Kp 6.7
- Marshfield Hills Kp 6.7
- Marstons Mills Kp 6.8
- Mashpee Kp 6.8
- Mashpee Neck Kp 6.8
- Mattapan Kp 6.7
- Mattapoisett Kp 6.8
- Mattapoisett Center Kp 6.8
- Maynard Kp 6.7
- Medfield Kp 6.7
- Medford Kp 6.7
- Medway Kp 6.7
- Melrose Kp 6.7
- Mendon Kp 6.7
- Merrimac Kp 6.6
- Methuen Kp 6.6
- Mid-Cambridge Kp 6.7
- Middleborough Kp 6.8
- Middleborough Center Kp 6.8
- Middlefield Kp 6.7
- Middleton Kp 6.6
- Milford Kp 6.7
- Millbury Kp 6.7
- Millers Falls Kp 6.6
- Millis Kp 6.7
- Millis-Clicquot Kp 6.7
- Millville Kp 6.8
- Milton Kp 6.7
- Milton Center Kp 6.7
- Milton Upper Mills Kp 6.7
- Milton Village Kp 6.7
- Mission Hill Kp 6.7
- Monson Kp 6.7
- Monson Center Kp 6.7
- Montague Kp 6.7
- Monterey Kp 6.7
- Montgomery Kp 6.7
- Monument Beach Kp 6.8
N
- Nahant Kp 6.7
- Nantucket Kp 6.9
- Natick Kp 6.7
- Needham Kp 6.7
- New Bedford Kp 6.8
- New Braintree Kp 6.7
- New Marlborough Kp 6.7
- New Salem Kp 6.7
- New Seabury Kp 6.8
- Newburyport Kp 6.6
- Newton Kp 6.7
- Newton Center Kp 6.7
- Newton Corner Kp 6.7
- Newton Highlands Kp 6.7
- Newton Lower Falls Kp 6.7
- Newton Upper Falls Kp 6.7
- Newtonville Kp 6.7
- Nonantum Kp 6.7
- Norfolk Kp 6.7
- North Adams Kp 6.6
- North Amherst Kp 6.7
- North Andover Kp 6.6
- North Attleborough Center Kp 6.8
- North Brighton Kp 6.7
- North Brookfield Kp 6.7
- North Chicopee Kp 6.7
- North Eastham Kp 6.8
- North End Kp 6.7
- North Falmouth Kp 6.8
- North Lakeville Kp 6.8
- North Pembroke Kp 6.7
- North Plymouth Kp 6.8
- North Reading Kp 6.6
- North Scituate Kp 6.7
- North Seekonk Kp 6.8
- North Westport Kp 6.8
- Northampton Kp 6.7
- Northborough Kp 6.7
- Northbridge Kp 6.7
- Northfield Kp 6.6
- Northwest Harwich Kp 6.8
- Norton Kp 6.8
- Norton Center Kp 6.8
- Norwell Kp 6.7
- Norwood Kp 6.7
O
- Oak Bluffs Kp 6.9
- Oak Hill Park Kp 6.7
- Oakham Kp 6.7
- Ocean Bluff-Brant Rock Kp 6.7
- Ocean Grove Kp 6.8
- Onset Kp 6.8
- Orange Kp 6.6
- Orient Heights Kp 6.7
- Orleans Kp 6.8
- Osterville Kp 6.8
- Otis Kp 6.7
- Oxford Kp 6.7
P
- Palmer Kp 6.7
- Paxton Kp 6.7
- Peabody Kp 6.7
- Pelham Kp 6.7
- Pepperell Kp 6.6
- Peru Kp 6.7
- Phillipston Kp 6.7
- Pinehurst Kp 6.7
- Pittsfield Kp 6.7
- Plainville Kp 6.8
- Plymouth Kp 6.8
- Plympton Kp 6.8
- Pocasset Kp 6.8
- Princeton Kp 6.7
- Provincetown Kp 6.8
Q
- Quincy Kp 6.7
R
- Randolph Kp 6.7
- Raynham Kp 6.8
- Raynham Center Kp 6.8
- Reading Kp 6.7
- Readville Kp 6.7
- Rehoboth Kp 6.8
- Reservoir Kp 6.7
- Revere Kp 6.7
- Richmond Kp 6.7
- Rochester Kp 6.8
- Rockland Kp 6.7
- Rockport Kp 6.6
- Roslindale Kp 6.7
- Rowley Kp 6.6
- Roxbury Crossing Kp 6.7
- Royalston Kp 6.6
- Russell Kp 6.7
- Rutland Kp 6.7
S
- Sagamore Kp 6.8
- Salem Kp 6.7
- Salisbury Kp 6.6
- Sandisfield Kp 6.7
- Sandwich Kp 6.8
- Saugus Kp 6.7
- Savin Hill Kp 6.7
- Savoy Kp 6.6
- Scituate Kp 6.7
- Seekonk Kp 6.8
- Sharon Kp 6.7
- Sheffield Kp 6.7
- Shelburne Kp 6.6
- Shelburne Falls Kp 6.6
- Sherborn Kp 6.7
- Shirley Kp 6.7
- Shrewsbury Kp 6.7
- Shutesbury Kp 6.7
- Smith Mills Kp 6.8
- Somerset Kp 6.8
- Somerville Kp 6.7
- South Amherst Kp 6.7
- South Ashburnham Kp 6.6
- South Boston Kp 6.7
- South Deerfield Kp 6.7
- South Dennis Kp 6.8
- South Duxbury Kp 6.8
- South Hadley Kp 6.7
- South Lancaster Kp 6.7
- South Peabody Kp 6.7
- South Yarmouth Kp 6.8
- Southampton Kp 6.7
- Southborough Kp 6.7
- Southbridge Kp 6.7
- Southwick Kp 6.7
- Spencer Kp 6.7
- Spring Hill Kp 6.7
- Springfield Kp 6.7
- Sterling Kp 6.7
- Stockbridge Kp 6.7
- Stoneham Kp 6.7
- Stoughton Kp 6.7
- Stow Kp 6.7
- Sturbridge Kp 6.7
- Sudbury Kp 6.7
- Suffolk Downs Station Kp 6.7
- Sunderland Kp 6.7
- Sutton Kp 6.7
- Swampscott Kp 6.7
- Swansea Kp 6.8
T
- Taunton Kp 6.8
- Teaticket Kp 6.8
- Templeton Kp 6.6
- Ten Hills Kp 6.7
- Tewksbury Kp 6.6
- The Pinehills Kp 6.8
- Thompsonville Kp 6.7
- Three Rivers Kp 6.7
- Topsfield Kp 6.6
- Townsend Kp 6.6
- Truro Kp 6.8
- Tufts University Kp 6.7
- Turners Falls Kp 6.6
- Tyngsboro Kp 6.6
U
- Union Square Kp 6.7
- Uphams Corner Kp 6.7
- Upton Kp 6.7
- Uxbridge Kp 6.7
V
W
- Wakefield Kp 6.7
- Wales Kp 6.7
- Walpole Kp 6.7
- Waltham Kp 6.7
- Ware Kp 6.7
- Wareham Center Kp 6.8
- Warren Kp 6.7
- Warwick Kp 6.6
- Washington Kp 6.7
- Watertown Kp 6.7
- Watertown Square Kp 6.7
- Wayland Kp 6.7
- Webster Kp 6.8
- Wellesley Kp 6.7
- Wellfleet Kp 6.8
- Wendell Kp 6.7
- Wenham Kp 6.6
- West Barnstable Kp 6.8
- West Boylston Kp 6.7
- West Bridgewater Kp 6.8
- West Brookfield Kp 6.7
- West Cambridge/Harvard Square Kp 6.7
- West Chatham Kp 6.8
- West Concord Kp 6.7
- West Dennis Kp 6.8
- West Falmouth Kp 6.8
- West Fens Kp 6.7
- West Newbury Kp 6.6
- West Newton Kp 6.7
- West Roxbury Kp 6.7
- West Somerville/Davis Square Kp 6.7
- West Springfield Kp 6.7
- West Stockbridge Kp 6.7
- West Tisbury Kp 6.9
- West Wareham Kp 6.8
- West Yarmouth Kp 6.8
- Westborough Kp 6.7
- Westfield Kp 6.7
- Westford Kp 6.6
- Westhampton Kp 6.7
- Westminster Kp 6.7
- Weston Kp 6.7
- Westwood Kp 6.7
- Weweantic Kp 6.8
- Weymouth Kp 6.7
- Whately Kp 6.7
- White Island Shores Kp 6.8
- Whitinsville Kp 6.7
- Whitman Kp 6.7
- Wilbraham Kp 6.7
- Williamsburg Kp 6.7
- Williamstown Kp 6.6
- Wilmington Kp 6.7
- Winchendon Kp 6.6
- Winchester Kp 6.7
- Windsor Kp 6.7
- Winter Hill Kp 6.7
- Winthrop Kp 6.7
- Woburn Kp 6.7
- Woods Hole Kp 6.9
- Worcester Kp 6.7
- Wrentham Kp 6.7
Y
- Yarmouth Kp 6.8
- Yarmouth Port Kp 6.8
How far south each storm level reaches
NOAA’s space weather scales state the geomagnetic latitude each level of geomagnetic storm reaches, and the places its aurora has been seen from. The geographic latitudes are those lines converted with the geomagnetic dipole; the aurora sits low on the northern horizon there, and overhead far poleward of it.
| Storm | Geomagnetic | Central US | Eastern US | Northern Europe | NOAA says the aurora |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G1 MinorKp 5 | 60° | 52°N | 51°N | 61°N | commonly visible at high latitudes: northern Michigan and Maine |
| G2 ModerateKp 6 | 55° | 47°N | 46°N | 56°N | has been seen as low as New York and Idaho |
| G3 StrongKp 7 | 50° | 42°N | 41°N | 51°N | has been seen as low as Illinois and Oregon |
| G4 SevereKp 8 | 45° | 37°N | 36°N | 45°N | has been seen as low as Alabama and northern California |
| G5 ExtremeKp 9 | 40° | 32°N | 31°N | 40°N | has been seen as low as Florida and southern Texas |
Source: NOAA space weather scales, swpc.noaa.gov/noaa-scales-explanation. Below Kp 5 the oval contracts more slowly; this section runs the line from 66 degrees geomagnetic at Kp 0 to the scale’s 60 degrees at Kp 5.
Kp by 3-hour block
SWPC’s planetary K index forecast, three days ahead. Kp is a single number for the whole planet, from magnetometers around the world, on a scale of 0 to 9 in thirds.
| Block (UTC) | Kp | Level | Seen from | Central US |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.67 | Quiet | 65° geomag. | 57°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 2.00 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 55°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.33 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 0.67 | Quiet | 65° geomag. | 57°N | |
| 1.33 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.33 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 2.00 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 55°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.33 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 0.67 | Quiet | 65° geomag. | 57°N | |
| 0.67 | Quiet | 65° geomag. | 57°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N | |
| 1.67 | Quiet | 64° geomag. | 56°N |
The forecast is for the planet, not for your sky. A block at Kp 5 means the field is disturbed enough for the aurora to reach 60 degrees geomagnetic somewhere along the night side; whether you see it depends on being on the night side, on darkness, and on the clouds.
Other states with aurora pages
What this means
Each place is placed by its geomagnetic latitude, measured from the geomagnetic dipole pole, and compared with the reach NOAA states for each storm level on its space weather scales: G1 (Kp 5) about 60 degrees geomagnetic, G2 55, G3 50, G4 45, G5 (Kp 9) 40. Reading that backwards gives the Kp a place needs. Below Kp 5 the oval contracts more slowly and the line runs from 66 degrees at Kp 0 to 60 at Kp 5.
The forecasts have different horizons and the pages keep them apart: OVATION is the only thing that knows whether an aurora is out now, and it reaches 30 to 90 minutes ahead; the planetary Kp forecast runs three days; the 27-day outlook names likely active days and is not a forecast of any one night. None of them knows the clouds, which is why a town page reads its own forecast for those.
Sources
From NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Center: the OVATION aurora forecast, the planetary K index forecast, the 3-day forecast, the 27-day outlook, its watches, warnings and alerts, and the real-time solar wind. Read Sep 20, 22:40 UTC.